Playing Armchair GM with St. Louis Rams’ 2013 NFL Draft Class

By Anthony Blake

Brian Spurlock-USA TODAY Sports

Hindsight really is 20/20 in life. The same applies to the NFL Draft a few years down the line when teams can accurately assess just how well they fared in landing high-quality talent class. For the St. Louis Rams, most pundits believe that they secured one of the top groups in 2013, but there’s nothing like getting an inside opinion and perspective and just what transpired in their war room during the three-day pick festival.

That’s exactly what insider Peter King offered in a piece found on ESPN.com where he discussed just how the Rams approached the draft this year. According to King, the Rams trading up to the Buffalo Bills’ selection at number eight overall was pre-arranged if Tavon Austin was still available. The deal was executed after the Arizona Cardinals selected guard Jonathan Cooper, and the Rams ended up with a player they really coveted.

Another insightful piece of information was that the Rams really did have linebacker Alec Ogletree as their primary target with their second pick in round one. The team rolled the dice by trading back down to the 30th overall selection from number 22 overall in hopes the he would still be available. King also said that there was a deal on the table offered by the Minnesota Vikings to trade back down from the 30th slot for additional second, third, and fourth round picks, but General Manager Les Snead couldn’t go against his better judgment as the Vikes ultimately traded up with the New England Patriots instead to acquire their third first round pick.

King also pointed out that the Rams were also considering guard Larry Warford with the 30th overall pick if Ogletree was gone by that point. This makes the Detroit Lions’ selection of Warford with the 65th overall selection all the more impressive. It also allows for some second-guessing by Rams fans that perhaps they could have gone multiple players they wanted by trading out of round one entirely with Minnesota.

It can be argued either way, but the Rams can’t be disappointed with the haul they did end up with in the 2013 NFL Draft. This could be the class that pushes the team form a cute upstart story in 2012 to a serious playoff contender in 2013. It’s always fun to play armchair GM after a draft is over, but the truth is GM Snead did a remarkable job to assemble a class that can really help this team win in the coming season.

Anthony Blake is a Senior Writer/Copy Editor for Rant Sports. You Can Follow Him on Twitter, on Facebook, or add him to your network on Google.